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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24791137">Eletric Blue</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mechanical_Curse/pseuds/Mechanical_Curse'>Mechanical_Curse</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Pacific Rim (Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Birthday Presents, Fluff and Humor, Getting Together, M/M, Newt being his usual chaotic self</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 10:22:16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,127</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24791137</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mechanical_Curse/pseuds/Mechanical_Curse</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After years of working with him, Hermann should know better than to interact with anything that comes from Newton’s side of the lab. So, when he finds blue chalks that don’t belong to him next to his blackboard, the clever option would be to put it back with the rest of Newton’s mess and leave it there. Except that they’re in the middle of the apocalypse and that chalks are getting more and more expensive by the day, especially colored ones. So writing an equation or two with it couldn’t really be that bad, right?</p>
<p>My late contribution for Hermann’s birthday</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Newton Geiszler/Hermann Gottlieb</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>73</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Eletric Blue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The moment he entered the lab, Hermann immediately noticed something wasn’t quite right with his side of the room. After years of working with Newton, it had become a second nature for him to spot any slight difference in his surroundings — and also survival instinct, considering the dangerous components his colleague worked with. Therefore, it barely took him a minute to locate the foreign object, especially since it had been placed right next to his chalkboards.</p>
<p>It was a white packaging, rectangular in shape and small enough that it could fit in his hand. With caution, Hermann gripped it between the tip of his fingers, determined to put it back on the living chaos that Newton called his desk as soon as possible. Previous experiences had taught him that everything that came from the biologist’s side was a potential life hazard.</p>
<p>However, as he moved the box, it accidentally slipped open and what was inside fell towards the floor. Out of reflex, Hermann caught it before it could hit the ground, the rational part of his brain not quick enough to remind him that it could very well have been toxic kaiju viscera.</p>
<p>Thankfully for him, the objects that ended up in his hands felt quite solid and not viscous at all, which was a relief. Actually, the texture was so familiar under his fingers that he could have recognized what it was even with his eyes closed. Chalks.</p>
<p>Not just any chalks, either. These ones were a bright, tantalizing blue, unlike anything Hermann had seen before. That was saying a lot, considering just how many blackboards the mathematician had filled with equations throughout his life. Suddenly, he felt like a bird in front of a shiny object, overwhelmed with the urge to just keep the chalks.</p>
<p>Of course, he knew that it was a bad idea. This had to be another one of Newton’s silly pranks, and Hermann would be mortified if he let himself be trapped so easily. But on the other side, chalks were hard to come by these days, because somehow humanity believed there were more urgent priorities in the wake of a monster apocalypse. There was a good chance Hermann wouldn’t see colored chalks again before the end of the war. <em>If</em> he survived the war, of course.</p>
<p>After all, just trying them couldn’t hurt, right? If he erased his board afterward, put the chalks back in the box and placed it among the rest of Newton’s mess, there would be no clue left and nothing for his annoying lab partner to brag about. All he had to do was to stay mindful of his surroundings and to keep his ears open so he wouldn’t be caught red-handed by said partner.</p>
<p>He put all of the chalks away except for one, then went to work on the equation that he hadn’t been able to finish the previous day due to exhaustion. The moment he traced the first number, his breath got caught in his throat. Now laid before his eyes, the color of the chalk looked even more striking. It glittered, too, and Hermann felt a twinge in his heart at how much it reminded him of the stars. With everything that had been going on, when was the last time he had been able to just relax and look at the night sky? He couldn’t even remember.</p>
<p>With the help of his new chalk, Hermann’s thoughts seemed to flow more easily. He completed equation after equation, losing himself into his work, forgetting everything about being careful or mindful of Newton.</p>
<hr/>
<p>About an hour later, he was still focused on his chalkboard, so much that he didn’t hear Newton enter the labs, two cups of coffee in his hands. The biologist stilled, cautious not to make a noise, then he observed Hermann work for a few minutes before he finally cleared his throat to let his presence be known.</p>
<p>“I see you’re enjoying your birthday present.”</p>
<p>Startled, Hermann promptly hid the chalk behind his back, like a kid caught cheating on a test. Not that he could conceal all the evidence when his chalkboard was covered in bright blue scribbles. The mathematician tried his hardest not to look flustered; Newton looked already smug enough as it was, grinning from ear to ear, no need to give him further satisfaction.</p>
<p>“Present?”</p>
<p>As he repeated the word, Hermann raised an eyebrow, hoping the question would win him enough time so he could regain his composure.</p>
<p>“What, did you think I would forget? Come on dude, we’ve known each other for so long, what kind of a shitty human being would I be if I didn’t mark the date? Also, I set up a notification on my phone in case I would. You know, so that I remember that it’s your birthday even if there’s a kaiju attack going on or whatever.”</p>
<p>Hermann swallowed back a bitter comment about how “shitty human being” seemed to apply to most of his family, starting with his father, of course. He had stopped thinking of his own birthday as a special day or acknowledging it at all years ago. He wouldn’t even have thought about it today without Newton’s intervention.</p>
<p>However, he didn’t snap at him because his friend’s attention seemed genuine. As Newton ranted, he even looked nervous and fidgety, even more so than usual. In the middle of his tirade, he seemed to remember the cups he was holding because he handed one to the mathematician.</p>
<p>“Here, that’s for you too.”</p>
<p>“Where did you get them?”</p>
<p>The confused look on Newton’s face was definitely not endearing, the traitorous fluttering in Hermann’s chest be damned.</p>
<p>“What, the coffees? Well, I just went to the mess, obviously, and…”</p>
<p>“Not the coffees. The chalks. These aren’t exactly easy to find.”</p>
<p>“Oh, that’s because I didn’t find them. I made them!” He exclaimed proudly</p>
<p>This time around, it was Hermann’s turn to be puzzled.</p>
<p>“You… made them?”</p>
<p>“Exactly! See, if you use the right method and are a Rockstar like me, you can turn kaiju blue into a powder and then…”</p>
<p>Hermann stopped listening at kaiju blue. He immediately dropped the chalk and took a step away from it, cursing himself for believing for one second that anything coming from Newton’s side of the lab could be safe.</p>
<p>“Kaiju blue? Are you trying to get rid of me, you reckless, irresponsible man?”</p>
<p>“What? Of course not! Maybe you’re having a hard time grasping that concept, but I care about you a lot and also, I’m not stupid! I neutralized it first and ran tests to make sure it wouldn’t be a threat to human health in any ways.”</p>
<p>“Even if it’s safe, which I highly doubt, how could you even consider pieces of the bloody monsters we’re trying to defeat as an appropriate birthday gift?”</p>
<p>“Well, sorry for trying to make something nice for you with what little material I have on hand! Also, those chalks are super cool and you’re just too blind to see it. I mean, if you think about it, it’s like writing in the blood of your fallen enemies. It’s viking, man!”</p>
<p>“What I do see if that those chalks are made of government’s property and that the Marshall would have both our heads if he learned about it. Not to mention that they are a chemical hazard.”</p>
<p>Newton rolled his eyes, which didn’t help to make Hermann calm down.</p>
<p>“They are harmless, I promise! Look, I’ll prove it.”</p>
<p>Before Hermann could stop him, the biologist took one of the chalks left in the box. And then, to Hermann’s growing horror, he proceeded to lick it, then grinned as if he had given the best scientific demonstration of the century.</p>
<p>“See, I’m not dead. Totally safe. There’s nothing to worry about.”</p>
<p>“I believe there is a lot I should be worried about, starting with the state of your mental integrity. Every time I think you can’t get even more foolish and self-destructive, you prove me wrong.”</p>
<p>“Come on, Herms, don’t be like that. I just showed you that it’s harmless. Unless you need another demonstration…”</p>
<p>“Oh no, you are not licking that damn thing again, you insufferable little man.”</p>
<p>Newton raised in hands up in surrender, a sheepish look on his face.</p>
<p>“Okay, okay, no need to get all worked up about this. Maybe we could make a deal? I won’t try to lick the chalks again if you keep them. I just wanted to give you something nice for your birthday, I promise, and I’m sorry if I screwed it all up. Look, I know that you won’t believe me no matter what I say, but I really put work in making sure those would be harmless, and I wouldn’t be offering them to you if I wasn’t one hundred percent certain of that. There isn’t even that much kaiju blue in it, too. I just… I’m sorry, I thought you would like them.”</p>
<p>The hurt he could pinpoint in the biologist’s voice was like a punch to Hermann’s stomach. Up until that point, he had been certain that Newton was only messing with him and that this whole ordeal would end up with one of their usual bickering. But considering how Newton was now stubbornly staring at the ground, all while trying to make himself look even smaller than he already was, Hermann had clearly misread the situation.</p>
<p>All his sense of preservation went out the window, in favor of doing everything necessary to have Newton smiling again.</p>
<p>“Fine, I’ll keep the chalks if it makes you happy, but at the first sign of any weird symptom, I’ll throw them away, is that clear?”</p>
<p>He crossed his arms, trying to look composed even as he gave into Newton’s antics.</p>
<p>“Hey, that might sound weird since I’m actually the one giving you a present here, but thanks dude. That means a lot.”</p>
<p>Hermann nodded, trying to conceal how much he was affected by this whole situation himself. Newton looked like he was about to go to his own side of the lab to resume his work on kaiju specimens. However, he stopped in his track at the last minute, suddenly lost in thought. Hermann knew him too well not to recognize that look.</p>
<p>Sometimes, Newton’s mind ran too fast even for himself, and so the biologist needed to take a minute or two to process what happened and what he had said to the people around him when they reached the end of a conversation. This little introspection didn’t seem to appease him though, because his face suddenly turned white.</p>
<p>“Is it me or did I… Did I say that I cared about you out loud?”</p>
<p>From the tone of his voice, Hermann could tell what “cared about you” truly meant to him. Of course, he could pretend that he didn’t hear anything, that it didn’t matter, so that they could go back to their usual bickering, to safer grounds, but he realized that he didn’t want to.</p>
<p>“You most certainly did. To be exact, I remember you precising, and I quote, that you ‘cared a lot.’”</p>
<p>Newton gasped, staring intently at the mathematician as if he was studying one of his samples, trying to decipher the mystery hidden behind his words and expression. When Hermann responded with an encouraging half-smirk, he decided to take his courage in his hands.</p>
<p>“Hey, Herms… Would it be okay if I tried to kiss you? Because I really, really want to right now, and from my point of view, you don’t look too opposed to… You know… Me and You… So I thought that maybe…”</p>
<p>“Newton, you just licked chalk made out of kaiju blue. You are absolutely <em>not</em> allowed to kiss me.”</p>
<p>Newton’s eyes turned sour with disappointment and he looked like he was about to interrupt him, surely to apologize for his boldness before running to the other side of the Shatterdome to cry and gather the shattered pieces of his heart. But before he could act on it, Hermann added, his cheeks tinged with pink:</p>
<p>“But I do expect you to offer me that kiss again once you’ll be done rinsing your mouth. I am still expecting an appropriate birthday present from you, after all.”</p>
<p>Joy came back to Newton’s face at the speed of light, and he couldn’t run to the sink of the lab fast enough.</p>
<hr/>
<p>In the end, Hermann had to recognize that Newton’s chalks were surprisingly harmless and that he worked better when he was using them. However, his pride kept him from asking for new ones once he ran out of them. Not that it mattered, because he quickly found a refiled box on their now shared bedside table.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>You can find me on <a href="https://newt-no-newt-yes.tumblr.com/">Tumblr.</a> Kudos and comments are always appreciated &lt;3</p></blockquote></div></div>
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